Kentucky Sports Radio
[Moderated by Matt Jones]
[Moderated by Matt Jones]
Well the Greatest UK Player Tournament Ever is back from its hiatus with results of its closest matchup yet to date. If you remember, the last matchup you were asked to vote on was in the now famous Antoine Walker vs Chuck Hayes event. And well, it was a close and controversial finish. In a result I found surprising, Antoine Walker took out Chuck Hayes 3-2 to advance to the next round. AS you can see, the fans ultimately put Antoine over the top, although he only won the fan vote by 8 votes.
Matt Jones: Antoine Walker
Rob Gidel: Chuck Hayes
Larry Vaught: Chuck Hayes
Gregg Doyel: Antoine Walker
Fan Vote: Antoine Walker
So with that, we move to the next round and the dreaded 2-15 matchup, with Cotton Nash vs Nazr Mohammed:
Cotton Nash:
Part of the reason we do this tournament is so that fans of the younger generation can learn about guys like Cotton Nash. Simply put, there is likely no UK player who won more accolades during his time at Kentucky than Mr. Nash. Cotton came to UK in 1960 from Louisiana and after sitting out his Freshman year, proceeded to take the SEC by storm. Cotton was 2nd team All American his Sophomore year, 2nd team All American his Junior year and Consensus 1st team All American his Senior year. His talent was visible in every game played at Kentucky and he finished his career with one of the more remarkable statistics that I have ever seen. In the course of Cotton’s career, spanning a total of 78 games, he scored in double digits in all but 5 of those games. Think about that for a second……from the time he walked on the court for the first time until he left Kentucky, only five times did he walk off with less than 10 points. Even more astounding, out of those 78 games, he scored over 20 points in a game, 52 times. He was unstoppable all the way around and a poster boy for Kentucky basketball when the sports was just beginning to take hold nationally. He was the first SI UK coverboy and he finished his career 9th all time in scoring and 5th all time in rebounds. He could do it all and to many is the ultimate embodiment of Kentucky basketball in that generation. Hard to find many better than Cotton Nash.
Nazr Mohammed:
If you looked throughout UK basketball history, you will be hard-pressed to find a person who improved more in his career than the man they call Nazr. Arriving on UK’s campus at the beginning of the the greatest team in NCAA history’s magical season, Nazr find himself overweight and playing on (of all things) the JV team. However over the course of the next three years, Nazr outworked everyone, slimmed down and became a force to be reckoned with inside. He played three seasons and saw his college team go to the NCAA finals all three years….a run unmatched in UK history. Simply put, Nazr was a winner on the highest stage and at levels unprecedented in the Cats lore. He was the key cog in the national championship run of 1998, providing the consistent scoring and shot blocking that led him to later be a first round NBA Draft pick. Nazr was First Team All-SEC that last season and became one of the most feared big men in all of America. Those who saw him his Freshman year wondered how Nazr ended up at UK…..but he left as one of the greatest winners in its history.
So there you go…..Cotton and Nazr. Place your selection and give your best Cotton and Nazr moments in the comments section. The Adolph Rupp 1st Round Bracket is complete and we will now move on tomorrow to the next set of contenders……
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July 30th, 2007 at 9:55 pm
This should be the battle of the coolest first names as well.
Cotton wins.
July 30th, 2007 at 9:55 pm
1st
July 30th, 2007 at 9:56 pm
Cotton Nash!
July 30th, 2007 at 9:56 pm
hahahahahaha…zogg quit being a douchebag.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:02 pm
Cotton Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 10:02 pm
Love Nazr, but this one goes to Nash in a walkover.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:03 pm
Nazr Mohammad
July 30th, 2007 at 10:05 pm
I loved watching Nazr and he was the man, but I got to go with Cotton.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:07 pm
Cotton Nash…just because Nazr couldn’t hit a freakin free-throw in the 97 championship game.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:11 pm
Cotton Nash!!! He lived down the street from me growing up and was really cool to talk to about UK!!
July 30th, 2007 at 10:13 pm
Cotton Nash.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:14 pm
Cotton
July 30th, 2007 at 10:21 pm
Cotton easily. First great UK player I can remember seeing on TV.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:23 pm
Gotta be Cotton Nash.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:28 pm
Cotton, no question.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:32 pm
Cotton “balls” Nash.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:33 pm
Cotton Nash wins this one easy. But that does not diminish the contributions that Nazr made during his time at UK.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:39 pm
Cotton Nash, hands down.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:46 pm
http://www.break.com/index/dropped-third-strike-home-run.html
Most messed up play in baseball history…. strike out and home run at the same time…
July 30th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
Cotton Nash, the great uncle of Mr. Steve Nash. OK, I made that up.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:51 pm
Love Nazr, but Cotton wins this one easily.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
Cotton.
July 30th, 2007 at 10:57 pm
Cotton Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:05 pm
Minnesota was at a disadvantage in the Final Four…most of the players were up all night writing term papers with their own tired hands.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:05 pm
Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:06 pm
same as 21. Nash.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
Cotton Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
Cotton Nash and I love them both!
July 30th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
Cotton once gave me free-throw instructions as a young lad at Ecton Park in Lexington. I remember my cousin had a Cotton Nash baseball card and got him to sign it; he loved it and talked more about baseball than basketball. Superb athlete. I did score a Nazr signature in Fayette Mall, not quite as romantic…Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
Cotton Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:11 pm
Cotton Nizash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:12 pm
nazr has the ring… give my vote to mohammed
July 30th, 2007 at 11:13 pm
Although Nazr did bring us Mo’s Apparel (off the chain), and a remixed version of “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” on local radio that year. “Nah Nah Nah Nah Nah Nazr, Nah Nah Nah Nah Na-zr!” Jeez, only in middle school.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:21 pm
one stat will prevent me from voting for Nazr– zero for six from the free throw line in the national championship game. my vote is for Nash.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
Cotton was the greatest. I find the wording in the writeup a little strange. “…. after sitting out his freshman year”. He didn’t sit out. Freshmen were ineligible then. He played on the freshman team.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
for the first time, i wll go against the player that i saw, and go with the old school… as much as i like nas, the stats of cotton are quite incredible!!
July 30th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
cotton nash !!!!!!
July 30th, 2007 at 11:23 pm
Loved Nazr, but this is a true M&M’er. Cast my vote for Cotton Nash.
Nash might get upset later on however due to the lack of post season success of his teams.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:25 pm
Sorry Matt, Nash didn’t sit out his freshman year but did as all freshmen did and that was to play on the freshman team. That was the rule then - freshmen could not play varsity ball until their sophomore year.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:26 pm
I know that 39….but Freshman games dont count towards career stats
July 30th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
Nazr didnt play his freshman year either except on the junior varsity team, i believe he averaged about 25 points a game for the JV.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:30 pm
COTTON NASH
July 30th, 2007 at 11:35 pm
one of my earliest memories of UK bball is my grandad telling me stories of Cotton Nash. If i’m not mistaken his nickname was The Blonde Bomber??? Nazr was great but this one easily goes to Nash on that incredible scoring stat, and cool ass name.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
Cotton Nash
July 30th, 2007 at 11:40 pm
My vote goes to Cotton Nash.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:42 pm
Cotton Nash but unfair to compare players of different eras who played such different positions. Could build a better team around Nazr bur Nash gets the nod.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:45 pm
Nazr fo’sho
July 30th, 2007 at 11:46 pm
Who is he blocking in that photo? I am probably wrong, but is that Charles Thomas, former Harlan High School standout, and Mr. Kentucky Basketball?
July 30th, 2007 at 11:49 pm
Jay Shidler was nicknamed “The Blond Bomber” due to his dyed blond hair. He let it grow out his soph year and the nick name went away.
Have to go with Cotton Nash as the better player. Nash could do anything asked of him on the court. He had a jump shot from the head of the circle that just killed a lot of teams.
If you extrapolate in his freshman year and the lack of the three point shot, Nash would move to very near the top of the scoring list.
July 30th, 2007 at 11:52 pm
That is Charles Thomas….the best I personally ever played against (and included in that list is Scott PAdgett, Anthony Epps and Tim Couch)
July 31st, 2007 at 12:13 am
Cotton Nash!
July 31st, 2007 at 12:18 am
Without a doubt, I vote for Cotton Nash.
July 31st, 2007 at 12:18 am
Nazr has more crap to steal….Cotton. Charles Thomas was the crap!
July 31st, 2007 at 12:27 am
Cotton Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 12:51 am
Both great players. My edge to Nazr. On the SI cover, Cotton looks too much like Sid Hanson from Discovery Channel’s Dangerous Catch.
July 31st, 2007 at 1:06 am
You gotta be kidding, right ?
Cotton by a mile….
July 31st, 2007 at 1:08 am
50. Didn’t know Charles Thomas was good at golf….Nash wins bigger than Nobel Laureate John Nash in an math competition.
July 31st, 2007 at 1:16 am
not worthy of comparison………Nash in a landslide
you guys can do better than this
July 31st, 2007 at 1:25 am
Cotton
July 31st, 2007 at 1:31 am
i go with nazr, he’s got a college and nba ring.
July 31st, 2007 at 1:32 am
One of my earliest memories as a UK fan was hearing Cawood call Cotton Nash’s name over the radio as my Dad listened to the games. Cotton Nash made a big impact on me as a young UK fan, so my vote goes to him.
July 31st, 2007 at 1:35 am
Nazr Mohammed- high fived him in 98- UK vs Canisius in Niagra Falls!
July 31st, 2007 at 1:57 am
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 3:58 am
Nash in a walk…
July 31st, 2007 at 5:16 am
Cotton Nash no doubt…………one of the best great player love to listen to Cawood call a game with Cotton great memories.
July 31st, 2007 at 5:26 am
Nash was good individually. But he didn’t bring home a trophy.
Nazr was pretty darn good too and he helped bring home the big trophy.
But I have to vote Nash. Just a better player in his era. Probably in any era.
July 31st, 2007 at 6:16 am
Nash in this one!
July 31st, 2007 at 6:51 am
Cotton.
July 31st, 2007 at 6:51 am
Nash by a long shot…and it’s good for two!!! And only two. This long-range bomber could have been the all-time UK scoring leader had there been a 3-point line. As for those who say he didn’t bring home a trophy…it’s a team game, folks. We had no size at all on the front line during any of Cotton’s 3 years. At 6′5″, he jumped center. With a true center and a stable roster of starting guards we would have easily challenged for a title. As it was, we went 23-3 his soph. year and lost in the Elite Eight & lost in the Sweet Sixteen his senior year. Not bad.
July 31st, 2007 at 7:11 am
Nash,and didn’t he play baseball too?
July 31st, 2007 at 7:13 am
Nazr- and that’s an unfortunate memory for Charles…I was in RCA Dome for that one. Go Green Dragons (but go Cats)!
July 31st, 2007 at 7:15 am
#73 UK’s record in NCAA during Nash era:
1961-62 - Participated in the Mideast Region of the NCAA Tournament
3/16/1962 Butler W 81 - 60 NCAA Mideast Regional (at Iowa City, IA)
3/17/1962 Ohio State L 64 - 74 NCAA Mideast Regional (at Iowa City, IA)
(did not make NCAA tourney in 1963)
1963-64 - Participated in the Mideast Region of the NCAA Tournament
3/13/1964 Ohio L 69 - 85 NCAA Mideast Regional (at Minneapolis, MN)
3/14/1964 Loyola (Chicago) L 91 - 100 NCAA Mideast Regional [Consolation] (at Minneapolis, MN)
UK record in NCAA during Nazr era:
1995-96 - Participated as #1 Seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament
3/14/1996 (16) San Jose State W 110 - 72 NCAA Midwest Regional First Round (at Dallas, TX)
3/16/1996 (9) Virginia Tech W 84 - 60 NCAA Midwest Regional Second Round (at Dallas, TX)
3/21/1996 (4) Utah W 101 - 70 NCAA Midwest Regional (at Minneapolis, MN)
3/23/1996 (2) Wake Forest W 83 - 63 NCAA Midwest Regional Finals (at Minneapolis, MN)
3/30/1996 (1) Massachusetts W 81 - 74 NCAA Final Four (at East Rutherford, NJ)
4/1/1996 (4) Syracuse W 76 - 67 NCAA Championship (at East Rutherford, NJ)
1996-97 - Participated as #1 Seed in the West Region of the NCAA Tournament
3/13/1997 (16) Montana W 92 - 54 NCAA West Regional First Round (at Salt Lake City, UT)
3/15/1997 (8) Iowa W 75 - 69 NCAA West Regional Second Round (at Salt Lake City, UT)
3/20/1997 (4) St. Josephs W 83 - 68 NCAA West Regional (at San Jose, CA)
3/22/1997 (2) Utah W 72 - 59 NCAA West Regional Finals (at San Jose, CA)
3/29/1997 (1) Minnesota W 78 - 69 NCAA Final Four (at Indianapolis, IN)
3/31/1997 (4) Arizona L 79 - 84 OT NCAA Championship (at Indianapolis, IN)
1997-98 - Participated as #2 Seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament
3/13/1998 (15) South Carolina State W 82 - 67 NCAA South Regional First Round (at Atlanta, GA)
3/15/1998 (10) St. Louis W 88 - 61 NCAA South Regional Second Round (at Atlanta, GA)
3/20/1998 (6) UCLA W 94 - 68 NCAA South Regional (at St. Petersburg, FL)
3/22/1998 (1) Duke W 86 - 84 NCAA South Regional Finals (at St. Petersburg, FL)
3/28/1998 (3) Stanford W 86 - 85 OT NCAA Final Four (at San Antonio, TX)
3/30/1998 (3) Utah W 78 - 69 NCAA Championship (at San Antonio, TX)
July 31st, 2007 at 7:43 am
Somebody check the records!! I think Nash was the leading scorer in UK history when he finished his college career. He is probably 9th in scoring now. Thanks.
July 31st, 2007 at 8:00 am
Cotton
July 31st, 2007 at 8:02 am
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 8:23 am
Cotton Nash.
July 31st, 2007 at 8:27 am
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 8:31 am
Cotton Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 8:38 am
well this one is already decided but i will still say nazr
July 31st, 2007 at 8:44 am
I go back to 1958 and the Fiddlin Five. Cotton Nash is the greatest player of All Time at UK. He is actually the second highest scoring player in ppg, this without the 3 pt. shot and he is still fourth in rpg. It was stated above he was ninth and whatever but that was total, which is not valid since he could only play three years and not four. The only player in his category is Dan Issel but Cotton was the greater all around player
July 31st, 2007 at 8:49 am
Nash and it’s not close.
July 31st, 2007 at 8:51 am
Cotton
July 31st, 2007 at 8:56 am
King Cotton by a landslide. Maybe the greatest Athlete ever at UK.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:02 am
Nash hands down. Also had a very brief cup of coffee in MLB.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:03 am
Missed FT’s against Zona in ‘97 puts Nash on top of this one.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:05 am
Nash.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:10 am
Missed free throws or not. This one isn’t even close. Nash in a landslide.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:11 am
Cotton Nash was my first UK basketball hero as a child. He could do no wrong in my eyes and I found it unbelieveable that UK ever lost a game while he played.
Matt, you didn’t mention what a great baseball player Cotton was and his brief MLB career. I wished Cotton had gone straight to the NBA so he could’ve shown everyone how great he was and what a great player UK had.
Nazr was so fun to watch play and improve. He was a very good UK player on some very good teams. I hated it when he went pro.
I believe Dan Issel was the greatest UK player ever. Cotton Nash is #2 on that list. If you are too young to have seen King Cotton play, believe me, he was great.
Cotton wins this one easily.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:12 am
I going with Nash on this one.
Matt.
Did you ever announce the winner of the Hayes/Walker fight?
I dont recall it and would like to read it if I missed it.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:14 am
Nash, and it should be a unanimous landslide
July 31st, 2007 at 9:14 am
I saw Cotton go up for a transition shot from side and defense came from right side he tossed the ball to his left hand and shot only net. At that time you did not see players with creativity like that. Great player!
July 31st, 2007 at 9:17 am
Never saw nash play. this just isn’t fair. i guess i will go with Nazr.
btw, chuck hayes should’ve beat walker cause walker was only at UK for 2 years.
July 31st, 2007 at 9:30 am
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 9:56 am
Nash. But I had to really think about it.
July 31st, 2007 at 10:15 am
#89… If it were a snake, it would bit ya’. It’s at the beginning of THIS thread. Walker wins. Here I vote for Cotton, but I did enjoy the Nazr/Magloir combo at center. If I could take the package deal, they get my vote. One guy was the finnesse player and scorer, the other was the banger and enforcer. They were fun to watch.
July 31st, 2007 at 10:34 am
Cotton Nash - no question.
July 31st, 2007 at 10:39 am
Nash!
July 31st, 2007 at 10:39 am
This one is easy. Cotton Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 10:49 am
the number on cotton nash convinced me.
July 31st, 2007 at 10:51 am
Cotton Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 10:55 am
Cotton Nash in an easy one!
July 31st, 2007 at 11:12 am
Cotton Nash = Dollar Bills
July 31st, 2007 at 11:32 am
Nazr was a total winner. Played in three national championship games (although his roll in ‘96 was very limited).
Basketball is a team game and Nazr’s team game (and stats) are awesome. I will not vote against him and thus vote for
Cotton who had a better individual game and stats.
Go Nazr - you got my vote!!
July 31st, 2007 at 11:50 am
Cotton Nash kind of reminds me of a serial killer on that SI cover. Kind of creepy.
July 31st, 2007 at 11:55 am
Cotton Nash by a mile. Imagine his stats if he could have played on the “varsity” team as a freshman.
July 31st, 2007 at 11:57 am
Nazr was a great. Improved more than any player in my memory, but Cotton Nash was a superstar. Nash is my vote.
July 31st, 2007 at 12:01 pm
Cotton Nash will be one of the greatest players in UK history along
with Dan Issell and Cotton gets my vote.
July 31st, 2007 at 12:04 pm
Nazr, Somebodys gotta give him some love.
July 31st, 2007 at 12:27 pm
Just a nitpick, but Nash was NOT the first UK coverboy on SI. Ralph Beard was in 1949. In fact that was the very first Sports Illustrated ever.
(although there is a technicality, in that this was the Dell edition of Sports Illustrated). After a year or so Dell went out of business, a few years later someone else bought the name from them and started publishing Sports Illustrated as we know it today. So according to SI today, Vol. 1 No. 1 is from 1954 and has Eddie Mathews on the cover. But the real Vol. 1 No. 1 is Ralph Beard.)
Jon
July 31st, 2007 at 12:27 pm
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 12:36 pm
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 12:41 pm
F an A Cotton! Nash gets my vote.
July 31st, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Cotton Nash without a doubt
July 31st, 2007 at 1:09 pm
Here’s some love for Nazr. Tournament records no comparison, Nazr rules.
July 31st, 2007 at 2:05 pm
Cotton even though I like Nazr.
July 31st, 2007 at 2:47 pm
Remember Nazr’s buzzer-beater against Vandy. I don’t remember which year, but it was a horrid shot.
July 31st, 2007 at 2:50 pm
Nash
July 31st, 2007 at 3:06 pm
This is kind of unfair to Nazr, but I have to go with Cotton
July 31st, 2007 at 6:35 pm
Cotton
July 31st, 2007 at 8:22 pm
Couple of other notes on Nash. It was said that Rupp built Memorial Coliseum but Nash filled it. Cotton Nash was called by Sport Magazine as the most “Attractive” athlete they had ever seen. Nash was a 6′5 center playing out of position, would be a small forward or shooting guard today, still racked up tremendous stats. He played on teams with decent players but not great. He and Rupp carried UK in the early 60’s
July 31st, 2007 at 9:25 pm
love Nazi but Cotton is a legend
Cotton it is!
July 31st, 2007 at 9:58 pm
Can still hear Cawood Ledford saying, “Cotton Nash, The Big Blonde from Lake Charles, La.”. Those were the days!
July 31st, 2007 at 10:49 pm
NASHburn baby!
August 1st, 2007 at 8:53 am
Terry, Larry Pursiful (Cotton’s sophomore year) and Ted Deeken (Cotton’s class)
were both outstanding players, but you are right - the Cats were not recruiting top
classes every year at that time, so there was no continuity of talent, no depth
and no front line.
August 1st, 2007 at 7:07 pm
Nazr. I loved him!
August 6th, 2007 at 11:37 pm
Cotton was the only high school player I ever saw in person who made it big in college. Great kid and athlete. I listened to his games on radio in Texas. Have loved college basketball and UK ever since.
August 14th, 2007 at 9:26 am
I couldn’t understand some parts of this article Greatest UK Player Ever Tournament: Cotton Nash vs Nazr Mohammed, but I guess I just need to check some more resources regarding this, because it sounds interesting.